Daddy's Little Girl
by sweetangel014
Summary: Aah, the wonders of teenhood; the dating, the awkward phases, the first taste of wine and alcohol and an... overprotective father. His little Aria seems to have a made a special bond with someone while Kyle was away; and he doesn't like it. Not one bit.
1. Chapter 1

**~~Daddy's Little girl~~**

A/N: Hey people! It's my first time writing a Rune Factory fic. I hope this piece will exceed in you expectations! Please Read and Review! I wrote this since an inspiration came when my buddy asked me, _'What would happen if Kyle became like a mini-Douglas?_'and thus, the birth of this story!

* * *

**Prologue**

**Ding! Ding! Ding!**

The school bell rang out, signaling the end of the students stood behind their respected counters as they try to put the finishing touches on their school work. Cammy was with Roy outside talking to Barret about their assignment as the cherry blossoms fell gently like a rain of fragrant petals.

Aria shifted in her sit as Leann finished cleaning the table they were using to try and bake a Doria. Leann was a whiz when it comes to baking goodies but Aria is more skilled when it comes to Sashimi since she has a dab hand when it comes to slicing through anything; training with Tanya and sometimes with Jake and Barret had its perks after all. Aria handed another clean table cloth to Leann to smiled at her gratefully and gave a last swipe on the almost sparkling table surface. Her mother, Mana, wiped a drop of sweat from her brow as she turned off the gas range and smiled at her students' works.

She always wanted to bake some cakes and delicacies with Aria at home but the girl kept vanishing most of the time and always came home late with her clothes caked with mud, dirt and to her horror; monster blood. This is one of the things she was found reliving when her husband came back after the six long years of absence. She remembered having a fight with her father about Kyle's unexpected and unannounced departure which resulted to Douglas begrudgingly asking his own granddaughter to deliver his letter of heartfelt apology to her own mother.

"Hmmm, good work Leonel! But next time try to whisk the eggs a bit more alright?" She said kindly to the feminine blond boy who smiled shyly in return. Mana turned to Aria and Leann's dishes. "This might be top-quality Leann! You have great skills at this! And Aria..."

She stopped short when she saw Aria's charred Doria, and the smell of slightly burnt plastic hung through the air. Mana cringed at the blackening edges of the cheese and Leann edged a bit away from Aria's cooking disaster. "Maybe you better pay attention to details next time dear?"she said to Aria in a gentle tone.

Aria blushed and nodded slowly as she picked it up and proceeded to place it in a garbage bag. She had to admit, she really was distracted; Orland's counter was facing in front of her and she can't help but feel conscious whenever he was five feet within her sights. She and the half-elf boy have gotten closer within the years during Kyle's absence.

She would always plaster a smile on her face and skip around to fool the adults that she was doing nothing wrong. But Cammy, Roy and the others knows that she had been going in and out of the dungeons in order to find clues about her dad. During the years of course, came the festivals; and in all those festivities, she always came to talk to him(Orland) first before anyone else. Sometimes she would go to the Eagle Inn to visit him, giving Egan a cheerful wave before going up to talk to the boy.

She had to admit, getting him to talk to her isn't easy. It took her almost a year for him to open up to her since his great dislike for humans he inherited from his father. Jake seems to voice out his loathing to humans but he comes off a little bit friendly towards her and Cecilia told Aria that its because Kyle was the only human her husband actually talks to in an almost friendly way.

Aria frowned a bit at the wasted dish and saw Orland raise a brow at her in a questioning manner. Her frown turned upside down and she gave him a small smile and shook her head a bit, making the boy shrug and proceeded to clean his work place. At first, he despised cooking since it comes off like a woman's job but he it began to grow on him but not too much to have it like Leonel's hobby.

Mana saw the interaction between the two teenagers and an idea formed into her mind.

* * *

"Honey, how old is Aria again?"

Kyle looked alarmed when Mana asked him that question, "She's already sixteen Mana, how can you forget?" he was grateful he put the hammer in the chest or he would've dropped the heavy tool and he will have another visit to the clinic again. Mana made a 'hmmm' sound and continued mixing the ingredients for their dinner.

The door opened to reveal Aria's twin brother Aaron with a hoe on his hand and a bundle of eggs on the other. He turned to his parents and greeted them, "Good afternoon mom, dad."

Kyle nodded towards the redhead and suddenly asked, "Wait a moment young man why aren't you in Barret's class yesterday?" Aaron scratched his head sheepishly and let his gaze drop on the floor, "I kinda had to miss it 'cuz Leann had a request on the bulletin board so..." he trailed off, making Mana smirk and Kyle roll his eyes.

"Son, it's alright to do requests for your girlfriend; but studies _first_!"

Mana tutted her husband but a smile still remained on her face, "Now Kyle, Barret said that Aaron is doing alright with his classes, so don't be hard on him. He needs some time with Leann. She is such a wonderfully kind girl, and a great cook! If Aria can participate a bit more with my baking classes, she doesn't need to make such a fuss on finding a husband and get married!"

Everything went silent after that statement. No sound was emitted from any of the except from the crackling fire and Aaron gulping loudly.

Kyle was literally frozen like a statue and Mana panicked at her husband's condition. "Kyle? Honey, are you alright?" She prodded his back with her hand but still no response. It looked more like he turned into stone and she could swear she saw his eyes rolled into the back of his head, making her feel an intense wave of deja vu with her own father whenever she talks about dating and marriage when she was still a child.

"Uh-oh..."

"Ma-ma-ma- Marriage? I only got a little time to bond with my little girl and you want to give her away already to some perverse and unworthy man, Are you_ mad_ woman?" he shouted at her his face turning red and steam blowing from his ears.

Mana glared at him and stood at her full height with her arms crossed defiantly on her chest, "Don't you yell at me! Are you saying I can't voice out my opinion in this house? Or it doesn't matter?" her voice was not loud like Kyle's but it dripped with deadly venom and a tone that only women can achieve when guilt-tripping their men. Kyle winced and looked like a puppy who was kicked by a brutish bully.

"Mana, that's not what I meant. I mean; I haven't spend enough quality time with Aria and I'm not ready to give her away just yet. I can't even think about what would happen if she was dating someone-"

The door opened and a lovestruck Aria came waltzing in with a dreamy look on her face.

"Mom, Orland just asked me out to the Flower Festival!"

Kyle fell nauseous then everything went black.

* * *

_Earlier at Alvarna Academy:_

Aria sighed as she sat beside Leann under the cherry blossom trees with a paper bag on her hand that contains her lunch. Her grandpa gave her a fruit sandwich for lunch and kept reminding her to work hard, but not too hard. Leann looked at her distressed friend and retrieved an indigo grass from her pocket.

Aria looked at her friend with a brow raised in a questioning manner as Leann handed her the plant, "Here take a whiff, it will help you calm down." She said with a smile as Aria took it from her and breath into it and exhaled slowly, "Thanks Leann, I needed that!" Aria said with grinning from ear to ear.

Leann giggled as Aria played with the grass and put some of it on her upper lip, "Look, I got a mustache!" Leanne giggled at Aria's childish antics and opened her tin lunchbox and retrieved two slices of pizzas wrapped in wax paper. Cecilia really knows how to cook it just the way she likes it and she really does love pizza even though her mother warned of eating too much of it will result to pimples and an expanded waistline.

Orland watched the two girls as he bit on the tamien sashimi Aria gave to him when she visited the Inn earlier that morning. His mother adores her and his father doesn't mind her presence much since she had been going in and out of the Inn for gods knows for how long. Egan is always friendly to everyone which somewhat irks him and Jake alike though he's really scary when he gets mad.

He sighed and dipped the fish on some soy sauce. Roy heard his sigh and nudged Leonel with a smile on his sunny face, "Hey Leonel, looks like the ice prince has a heart after all!" He snickered and Leonel just chuckled nervously as Orland heard the statement and glared at them with his elfen hears turning a bit red, "Will you cease your pointless banter and find something productive to do? In your case Roy, your homework?"

Roy just guffawed and waved it off like it was nothing, "Yeah right, like I understand what Barret's talking about half of the time! Anyway, more important matters; who are you gonna take to the Flower Festival? I'm taking Cammy!" he announced and smiled like he had just been a really lucky winner of a lottery.

Leonel twiddled his thumbs and blushed, rosy pink tinted his angelic face, "I think I'm going to ask Serena and Sera to watch it with me..." he trailed off. Roy nodded at Leonel and his grin grew ten times bigger when he looked at Orland, "And you? When are you gonna tell Aria you had a crush on her ever since you two did that mock wedding?"

Orland growled at the smiling idiot and neatly folded the styrofoam plate with the chopsticks on them, "I don't know what you're saying. You humans are such simpletons!" He stood up and dusted of his pants and gracefully exited with his white cape trailing behind him. Roy made a face than ran after Orland and placed an arm on his shoulder, much to Orland's disgust.

"Listen Orland, it's time to make a move with her. She might leave one day or a new guy might move in and start courting her. So you better suck in your pride and ask her!" and with that said, he left Orland standing there with that epiphany.

"Alright... I guess I'm going to ask her. This is too much hassle..."

* * *

_Dad? Daddy?_

Oh he can hear it, his precious girl calling out to him, '_I promise nothing's ever gonna come between us Aria_' he mentally promised as Mana dabbed his forehead with a damp towel and Aria and Aaron was on either side of the couch.

Kyle opened his eyes and saw the warm cinnamon color of his daughter's eyes brimming with worry and his wife's disapproved frown, "Kyle, aren't you being a little bit too overreacting?" Kyle sat up and and looked at Aria in the eyes and grabbed her hands tightly, ignoring Mana's question

"I had the most scary nightmare; your mom wanted you to get married and you said that Orland fellow was taking you to the Flower Festival!"

To his horror, Aria smiled happily and nodded, "Yeah dad! Orland asked me after mom's class earlier today and I said yes~!" she answered in a sing-song voice and dropped her father's hands and went up to her room, her steps having an unnatural spring into them. Aaron closed his mouth once realized that it was hanging open and quickle came up with an excuse, "I-I'm gonna go to the barn and see if I locked it!" while in reality he's going to pay a visit to Orland and warn him his impending doom.

Mana just smiled, happy for her Aria. But her smile turned into a frown when she saw Kyle sitting up in a slump and his bangs covering his eyes. She sighed as she sat down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Kyle I know this is hard for you. And it was nice of you to not deny her of this-"

Kyle suddenly stood up, his face filled with determination and tongues of flames shot out from the background, "I'm going to stop their upcoming relationship even if it kills me!"

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A/N: And that's that. R&R please. You can submit suggestions and comments and constructive criticism via PM or review. Flames are not allowed.


	2. Flower Festival Part 1

**~~Daddy's Little girl~~**

**A/N: **Thanks to BlackCat133 and MidnightSakuraBlossom18(Love your pen name!)for reviewing my story~

I hope this chapter will make you enjoy the story more. Anyways, oh yeah! I forgot the disclaimer for the last chapter! so here it is, ahem: Rune Factory 2 is not mine but the property of _**NATSUME**_

There~

so enjoy the chapter and remember to R&R!

Disclaimer: Rune Factory 2 isn't mine.

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****Flower Festival****

Part 1

Aaron ran with amazing speed towards the inn, his heart pumping blood faster and his breathing turned frantic as he almost bumped into Alica who was going to the opposite direction. He skidded through the cobblestone path and almost tripped as Orland suddenly came out of the building with a usual frown glued to his aristocratic features.

Orland looked at the panting Aaron who was clutching his chest and gulping for the much needed oxygen. He looked at him curiously and pointed his chin towards the De Sainte-Coquille mansion, "You've missed your target building." he exclaimed quite smugly as Aaron rolled his eyes and cleared his throat, "And here I was worried about your safety, maybe I should just let dad seal your fate." He faked a hurt look and folded his arms behind his head and turned his back on Orland.

The half-elf teen 'tch-ed' and landed Aaron a small punch on his head, "Don't waste my time if you're not going to say something important to me!" Aaron groaned as he rubbed the spot where Orland had punched him, feeling a bump forming, and sighed, "Fine, I'm just going to give you a heads up if my dad's gonna murder you in your sleep!"

Orland looked at him with surprise coloring his face, "What did I do to him? I haven't done any-" He cut off as a single thought entered his mind; Aria plus dating him is equals to a murderous Kyle. And he wasn't overreacting; he remembered when he met Kyle again when Aria brought him back from his prison while Aaron was at the Clinic with Ray who was treating his wounds while his twin just had a few minor scratches on her body and a small thin scar that ran diagonally on her belly.

**Flashback:**

He was between Cecilia and Jake and Egan was right behind them. Kyle is like the adult male version of Aria; the same shade of red on the hair and eyes and even her face there were the remnants of her father. Barret and Dorothy were the first ones Kyle and Aria approached, though she stole glances at him while Kyle was talking to Barret about what he missed during his absence.

Leonel was about to converse with Aria but noticed the girl kept turning her back to look at Orland who was busy talking or rather arguing with Roy about something. Kyle nudged Aria to look at him and he asked,

"What are you looking at Aria?"

She blushed at this and mumbles something incoherently; Barret suddenly reprimanded her to talk clearly and stand up straight while Dorothy secretly smiled as Kyle just sighed and reminded Barret that he's not in class at that time, making Leonel grin a bit and Aria laughed in an unladylike fashion; making Barret roll his eyes in exasperation while murmuring how alike the two were, meaning Aria and Kyle.

When Kyle and Aria approached them, she kept smiling at him like an idiot while he just remained poker faced as Kyle looked suspiciously at him then at his smiling girl. He and Aria just stared at each other as Jake and Kyle talked about what Kyle's been up to and not to mention taunted him a bit for having his children save him. That earned his father an earful of telling off from his mother. He noticed Kyle was holding on to Aria's hand like his hands depended on it. Well... of course he misses his daughter very much.

After their talk, the earth began to shake and they were about to panic while Kyle just sighed loudly and uttered a single word; "_Douglas_"

As if on cue, the muscular man came forward, flexing his biceps and tackled Kyle to the ground, letting go of Aria's hand before she can go down with him. Douglas stared down at Kyle for a long time while almost everyone was holding their breath then he said,

"The next time you decided to leave, never and I mean never leave us hanging like that!" Kyle nodded and cracked a smile as everyone was sighing in relief as the two men chuckled around the tense atmosphere and everyone said their goodbyes and returned to their work like an ordinary day.

All but Aria left and she tackled Orland from behind, making him trip towards the dusty pathway making Cecilia and Jake look alarmingly at Aria who blushed and mumbled, "Can I talk to Orland for a moment?"

Ceci smiled and nodded slightly and went her way towards the mansion while Jake just shrugged and headed down to the smithy, leaving two teenagers and unknowingly, Kyle who was hiding behind a tree.

Orland frowned some and stood up dusting off the dirt from his clothes and glared at Aria who was innocently scratching her cheek, "What was _that_ for? You humans have no sense of common courtesy whatsoever!" he hissed. Kyle was about to come out of his hiding place to scold the teen but Aria just smiled and acted like it was a normal occurrence.

"Hey Orland, you remember what tomorrow is?"

He stopped short and plastered an inquiring look, mentally checking the calendar. As far as he knows, the Harvest Festival is in two days but Aria isn't all that hyped in that particular event. Aria pouted and huffed as she crossed her arms on her chest, making her bosoms more pronounced and Orland, being a teen and all, can't help but blush at this. He cleared his throat and looked at something else.

Aria's cheeks puffed like a blow fish and she suddenly said, "You don't even remember our wedding anniversary? You're the worst husband ever!"

Kyle's eyes grew as big as Herman's dinner plate and he almost died of heart attack from the words his daughter yelled out confidently. They weren't even anywhere near the marriageable age and they're already having an anniversary? What kind of sick, twisted dimension had the world become?

He saw the half-elf blond grumbled and replied, "It's not that big of a deal Aria-"

"What do you mean not a big of a deal? A wedding is what most women have been waiting for and you have the gull to say _it's not that important_?"

"Oh for the love of- It's just a _mock_ wedding Aria! We were just kids back then, don't tell me you're taking that seriously?"

Aria blushed way past her usual pinkish blush to a dark crimson shade. She bit her bottom lip and ran towards her house crying while yelling,

"I hate you Orland! You are the worst!"

Kyle watched Aria run frantically back to their house and he was about to unleash a full-blown hell to Orland, but he suddenly disappeared as though he knew that Kyle was there. Kyle grimaced at Aria's tears and went back home to comfort his daughter.

Orland sucked in a breath as he knocked on the front door. His heart thumping loudly as he prayed that Kyle won't be the one answering the door. The gods must have heard his prayers as the door opened and Mana was behind it. She had a look of surprise before a small grin appeared on her face, "Oh my, good afternoon Orland! Are you here to see Kyle? I think he's at the Clinic with Ray. That man honestly-"

"Excuse me, but I'm looking for Aria" he cut her off, making Mana look even more surprised then nodded slowly towards the staircase while saying, "Yes, can you please talk to her? She came back here in tears and won't even talk to me about what it was all about. I think she also took all the supply of ice cream and strawberry jam in her room..."

Orland excused himself and wandered upstairs. It was his first time inside her house and frankly, it was more bigger than the Inn. He knocked on the first door but all he heard was someone talking to another behind the door.

It strangely sounded like Aaron and Leann so he took the liberty to take a peek and nearly yelled when he saw the two in a tight lip-lock and the temperature suddenly got hotter as Aaron's hands suddenly went under Leann's outer coverings; he immediately closed the door and wished that he didn't see that private moment.

He knocked louder to the room next to Aaron's, hoping that it was Aria's. The door opened a bit and there was Aria with a spoon on her mouth and her cheek was stained a bit with a red gooey substance. She took off the spoon off of her mouth and smiled, "Hey Orland! Y'need something?"

Orland face-palmed at her sudden mood swings as she backed up a bit to let him enter her room. He entered with caution as he saw a couple of swords on top of a chest. Her room was simple enough; a dresser, a bed big enough for two and a mirror and a small coffee table and two chairs. A large carton of ice cream and two jars of strawberry jam was on the table, evident that she was indeed eating it all.

He sat on one of the chairs as she retrieved a jar of opened jam and dug her spoon in it and took a mouthful. He shivered at the thought that a person can actually eat the bittersweet jam alone with no bread or toast. She suddenly stopped with a spoon half way to her mouth and went to her dresser and pulled out a silver spoon and handed it to him, "Here, help yourself"

"You keep silverware in your dresser?" he asked as he plucked the utensil out of her hands.

She nodded and swallowed the sticky treat, "In case of food emergencies and unexpected guests. Speaking of which; what are you doing here? You never come and visit me before" asked as she dug her spoon to get more jam. His cheeks suddenly heated up and whispered, "I came to apologize"

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

He fidgeted slightly and put on an angry face, "Look, I know what happened and it's just pure common sense t what I said and-"

She blinked then suddenly laughed, cutting him off. He felt embarrassed as her saw the girl wiping tears from the corner of her eyes; here he was trying to apologize and all she did was laugh at his face, the nerve! He stood up and was about to leave when she tugged him hard on his sleeve, making him fall backwards on the bed, he can't help it, the girl has insane strength and he wasn't much built like her twin who has more pronounced muscles as they entered puberty.

"I'm laughing 'coz I knew dad was listening in on us so I wanna teach him a lesson about eavesdropping on me, I would never hate you over a silly thing you dumb-dumb!" she giggled as she hugged him in a friendly way. But at as she hugged him tight, Kyle opened the door without knocking.

"Hey Aria, can you tell-"

His foot stopped in midair as his brain tried to register the scene before him; his fifteen year old daughter lying on top of the guy she was fighting with earlier and they were positioned in an intimate way. His heart almost stopped when Aria just cheerfully chirped, "Hi dad! What do you want?"

A lump form in his throat as Aria stood from her position and Orland suddenly excused himself and ran towards the door and out of the house. Aria mentally giggled as she saw Orland ran off. But her smile didn't last when she saw her father's face. Anger and shock she can take but she hated the expression he currently had. The face of a disappointed father.

She patted her father's shoulder and said, "Dad, we weren't doing anything wrong. We're just friends... If anything, you should scold Aaron since he must have been in second base with Leann right now." she said with a disgusted look with her face as she helped her still shocked father sit on her bed. He just murmured words she can't quite understand as his eyes were fixated on the ice cream carton the two were eating before though the brown carton has a few dark spots from the moisture of the escaped coldness from the cold dessert.

Kyle leaned back to lie on his back and Aria rested her head on his stomach, both looking at her ceiling which was decorated with hand prints that belonged to her and Kyle when they were painting her room when she was just six. She was always with her dad when she was younger, always attached to his hip, at least, that's what her mother used to say.

Kyle sighed and suddenly said, "Aria... you knew I was listening weren't you?"

She nodded and he sighed loudly. The silence stretched on but it was a very comfortable silence and all that was heard were their even breathing. Kyle noticed the dimming light outside and looked at his daughter who had somehow fallen asleep on his chest. He smiled and got up slowly so not to wake her and retrieved the ice cream and what what's left of the jam and closed the door as quietly as he can as Aria drifted off into dreamland.

**End of Flashback**

Orland massaged his temple with his right hand as Aaron kept thinking of ways to let Orland and Aria have a peaceful date while avoiding Kyle's wrath. Heaven help him if Douglas decided to help Kyle ruin their day together. No fuss, no school, no errands, no work. Just him and Aria and the cherry blossom trees.

The two walked to the fountain as the sky painted a beautiful hue of orange across the sky as twilight is upon them. Aaron sat on the rim of the landmark whilst Orland looked at his reflection on the clear water. When he was young, before meeting Aria, he felt like he was detached from the world. He was always studying, his head buried in books and parchments while the other children would play outside and socialize with other people.

At first Cecilia haven't noticed this but as time flew, she and her husband realized the their son needs at least one friend, though his father is rather sour at the thought of his son hanging out with a human. Jake have already met the twins when they were toddlers; Aaron was hiding behind his mother while clutching a stuffed toy of a Wooly his mother made for him while Aria was standing proudly beside her father with her face held high and a smile on her young face.

He greeted Kyle a good morning and the farmer slash Earthmate greeted him as well with his cheery attitude. Aria looked at Jake with fascination in her eyes and tugged her father while keeping her gaze on Jake, "Daddy, he's different from me isn't he?"

Kyle just smiled apologetically at Jake who frowned at the curious girl, "Yes honey, you see Jake is an elf"

Aria looked at him with awe and suddenly tugged harder, making him shake, "Daddy, can I be an elf too? When I grow up, I wanna be like him!" Kyle's mouth dropped while Jake and Mana couldn't help but laugh at the puzzled Aria who was looking at the adults, "Why? Is it hard?"

Kyle shook his head and was about to reply when Jake patted the girl on her head fondly, "She's one of the decent humans you must have been talking about huh?" Aria just nodded her head enthusiastically while she doesn't understand what he was saying at that time. Kyle just rolled his eyes, better to agree than to argue with Jake anyway.

"Oh yeah, how's Ceci and Orland?"

"They are both well, now I better go before Tanya gets a hold of the alcohol and gets drunk before noon again. Tch, humans never learn from mistakes" he said as he headed towards the blacksmith's.

Aaron was about to say something when Aria suddenly appeared in front of them, making the two jump in shock. She frowned and said, "What are you two doing here at this time?" In her hand was a bag of monster feed and on the other was a pitchfork.

Aaron felt a chilling atmosphere and cringed when he saw Aria's Necro behind her back. That Necro of hers has been giving him the creeps ever since they went into Mt. Padova to collect the Daikon radishes they've planted there. Along with his silver wolf, two Necros ran after them. She took out her Monster glove started patting a Necro while the silver wolf attacked the other one. In the end; they got the radishes, Aria captured a monster and Aaron got a couple of tunas Mana needed for cooking class the next day.

Aria looked at Orland and an automatic grin made way to her face while Aaron felt like he was intruding in a private affair so he backed up, "Well, I said what I needed to say so I'll just head back to the house, shall I?" and without any reply, he ran off with a mischievous smirk on his face.

* * *

Aria was kicking a pebble as she and Orland walked together towards her house. They stopped by the barn to let her feed the monsters; though she can barely get in as the monsters flocked around her. She heaved the feed in equal parts and disappeared in the elevator as she went further down the floors, leaving him with a chattering Chipsqueak who was nibbling on its feed and a Hunter wolf looking at him suspiciously while chewing, making him wish she would hurry up.

They arrived on the front door and stared at each other. Orland turned to leave when Aria suddenly grabbed his hand, making him look at her; "What is it?"

She looked at the ground as she blushed and asked, "Why did you asked me out?"

He raised an eyebrow at this statement, "Why, do you want to back out?"

Aria shook her head rapidly and waving her hands, "That's not what I meant! I mean... do you... like me?" he asked, feeling somewhat conscious right now. He also blushed and rubbed the back of his neck and started to sweat profusely, "I... don't hate you..." He said.

Aria looked at him for a moment then planted a kiss close to his lips while whispering, "I don't hate you too."

Orland blushed harder at this and cleared his throat, "I'm picking you up at 8 here alright? If you're not ready then I'll just go by myself!" Aria just laughed and bid him a good night and he returned the greeting then went on his way.

Aria felt she was in cloud nine as she entered the house, then she was face to face suddenly with Kyle. Hoping he didn't see what happened outside, she faked an innocent face and braved a question, "H-hey Dad! Is something wrong?"

Kyle suddenly smiled in a creepy manner, making her shiver, "Oh no honey. In fact I have a surprise for you!"

"Really? What is it?"

"Tomorrow, I'm going to chaperon you~"

At that moment, Aria thought that she was having a nightmare.

* * *

A/N: So sorry for the late update since it's exams week. Darn you Physics and Chemistry! Anyway R&R people, and God Bless~! Suggestions and comments are always welcomed!


	3. Flower Festival Part 2

**~~Daddy's Little Girl~~**

***.*.***

A/N: Well, I updated sooner than expected, let's rejoice! ~ Anyways guys, thanks for reviewing my story constantly especially to MidnightSakuraBlossom18. I'm also a big Aria/Orland fan myself~ I was nervous about the Aaron/Leann and Jake/Ceci pairing since people usually pair up Kyle and Ceci; leaving poor Jake bitter and angry at Kyle and Aria, I don't know how to place bitter characters in my story :D

Special thanks to: MidnightSakuraBlossom18 and arkee for reviewing the previous chapter and morbidsweetie13 for sending me a PM of a suggestive scene with Orland and Aria (love you too Lee-lee!)

Now, on with the story and happy reading!

Disclaimer: Rune Factory 2 isn't mine.

* * *

*****Flower Festival*****

**.**

-Part 2-

.

Orland woke up bright and early even before sun could rise. He can hear the even breathing of his parents sleeping as he changed into his festival clothes. His mother made it for him when he turned twelve, saying that he should wear some special clothes for special occasions. He buttoned up his light blue silk dress shirt as he fixed his bangs to refrain them from falling on his line of vision. He can't remember the last time he felt actually _excited _about something.

He felt a ghost of a smile creeping on his face as he walked towards the bathroom to straighten his shirt and properly fasten his pants. He carefully put on his boots as he heard Egan's loud snores next to his bedroom and quietly slinked his way towards the front door before,

"Orland? Where are you going at such an early hour?"

He turned around to see his father who still has bed hair and wearing his night clothes. He looked at Orland who was sighing and shrugged towards Jake, "I was going to get something for the festival..." he said quietly, not really meeting Jake's light brown eyes with his icy blue ones. Jake raised an eyebrow at his son's sudden interest with the festival.

In fact, when Orland came home last night, he was touching the corner of his mouth and was blushing hotly as Cecilia smiled knowingly at her infatuated son as he mentioned that he will accompany Aria to the Flower Festival and suddenly saying that he wasn't exactly hungry for dinner and disappeared inside his room, leaving Jake and Egan confused as to what happened to that boy.

Cecilia was absolutely ecstatic that Orland has finally found something he is interested in other than studies and books. When Jake proposed to her at first, she was hesitant to accept his offer since she was in love with Kyle at that time. When Kyle gave her the round stone, she thought he will propose to her but sadly, Kyle had already have someone else occupying his heart and mind, namely Mana.

She was heartbroken and admits that she was a bit depressed when he said that, but he just reassured her that someone loves her with all his heart. "Ceci, why not give Jake a chance to get to know him better first? He would cross the entire world if it makes you happy and knowing him; he won't give up until he's dead anyway!" he answered with a small smile on his face.

Unbeknown to them that Jake passed by their hiding place and heard everything they said. Jake's eyes softened somewhat as Kyle persuade Ceci to give Jake a chance and luckily; Ceci did fall for Jake and accepted without a doubt when he proposed to her again after two seasons passed.

Orland and Jake just stared at each other before Jake sighed puffed out a breath and scratched the back of his head and waved Orland off on his way, "Fine just... at least give the girl some flowers. I think that's what your mother would say."

The teenager looked at his father with wide eyes at his unusual attitude. Usually Jake would just scoffed at the superficiality of humans as to watch the flowers where as they can watch it in any time of the season while other just drink until they're drowned from too much alcohol in their system. _Well, everyone has their day_, he thought as he opened the door and got hit with the chilly morning air.

He walked by the bunch of Moon Drops and Toy Herbs Aria and Leann planted next to the Dojo. He walked closely and Jake's words echoed in his head. He wished no one would see him carry a bouquet of flowers or they would never let it die before he does.

He picked a couple of Toy Herbs and added a few Moon Drops, making a sweet and fragrant aroma. There were still a lot left so he is sure that the two girls won't mind. He bundled them with a piece of strong string he had been keeping in his pants in case of emergencies and made a neat twine of ribbon Mana would be proud of.

Speaking of Mana, he saw her walking towards her father's store without her usually cheerful smile and instead a disapproving frown replaced it, making her looked annoyed at something. He unconsciously wondered what would make his kind and patient teacher look as if someone insulted her. He just shook his head and walked in front of Kyle's aka Aria and Aaron's barn. He can hear some growling, crowing and even chattering  
from the creatures inside. He suddenly can't help but feel a bit nervous on seeing Aria after what happened yesterday so he took a detour to buy some time to build his confidence back to its usual status. He went past the De Sainte-Coquille square and the clinic.

He was about to past by the general store when Douglas' huge head suddenly poked out of the door and called on to him. "Hey, you there, c'mere for a bit would you?"

Orland looked behind him to see if there were anyone else, there were none. He stepped in and the building was filled with its usual shipping boxes and different seeds lined neatly by their season. No doubt only Kyle and his children are the only ones buying them since they're the only ones who has a farm. Mana was drinking a cup of tea and was standing behind the counter. Her scrunched eyebrows raised as she watched Douglas ushered Orland in the store, she huffed and placed her hands on her hips, "Father, you're not giving him the third degree now, are you?"

Douglas looked offended and crossed his arms in retaliation, "Like I would do something so childish! Honestly Mana-"

"_Childish_, of course, you used to make earthquakes and make men wet themselves when they tried to talk to me before I married Kyle!"

Douglas groaned and looked defeated as Orland stood there wondering what the heck he was doing there. Mana snapped her attention to Orland and a maternal smile lit on her face, "Good morning Orland! Why those flowers look beautiful, are they for my Aria?" she asked while grinning with pure delight towards the sight of whites and yellows.

Orland shrunk back as he felt Douglas stare down him with an unvoiced conviction in his eyes. If the father didn't want his daughter going out with someone, would it also mean that the grandfather also doesn't? To his relief, Mana pushed her father down to his room so that she could speak to Orland privately. And that means to warn him before he comes down to a shock with the fact that Kyle would watch them like a hawk during their date and ruin the romantic atmosphere altogether.

She straightened her dress and sighed as she massaged her temple as she stood in front of him. Being a mother of an energetic daughter and wife of an overprotective father had taken its toll on her as she felt a bit hot headed since that morning as she cooked breakfast for her momentarily sleeping family before heading down to visit her father.

She and Kyle had a heated argument about going with his daughter when it was supposed to be her first date with Orland. She pointed out that he is becoming more like a dictator rather than being a supportive father while Kyle defended his reasons as to why he is willing to stop the romance.

Orland cleared his throat to catch her attention and it worked since she slightly jumped at the sound and chuckled a bit before saying, "Orland, I'm sure Aria would love those but if you want, I can give you a bit of some advise so you can speed it up with my daughter~!" she said with a sing-song voice, making him raise both his eyebrows in disbelief; What, he can't even court Aria properly without some sort of road map in form of her mother?

Mana looked alarmed at Orland's expression and waved her hands frantically, "Th-that's not what I meant Orland! I'm just trying to help you since you'll be in deep waters with my husband!" she exclaimed and a sweat drop forming on the side of her head. Orland's face suddenly turned blank as he finally came into a conclusion, "Kyle doesn't approve of me dating Aria. Am I correct?"

She gaped at him for a moment before shaking her head in retaliation, "That's not it Orland, he's just against the fact that she's in the age where dating is most of the time unavoidable"

"But Aaron's dating Leann and I don't see him getting so worked up about him," he pointed out

"No, he's more protective of Aria. They seem to have a little world of their own. Goodness, even when she was just a baby Kyle would hold her longer than he ever did with Aaron and tried to spoil her", which Mana firmly disapproves of. She told him to treat their children equally and accordingly. But it seems Aaron was fine with it as far as what Orland observed. At their current age, girls like Aria see their fathers like a nuisance and more like a chore when spending some father-daughter time together.

Mana continued to babble on and on about what Aria likes and what she loathes as Orland just sat on a chair as he sees he has no choice but to let her finish and just stared at the clock pinned on the wall, hoping he would arrive there before eight.

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"Dad, for the last time, she's not going to let you chaperon her!" Aaron sighed as he leaned on his door frame lazily as he ran a hand through his red hair as he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes while Kyle kept knocking softly at Aria's bedroom door, calling her out. After denying his accompaniment 'offer' to their date, she stomped angrily upstairs and Mana and Kyle heard her lash out at the innocent Aaron who asked what was her problem.

Kyle ignored Aaron for a moment while he continued coax her out of her room to talk to him rationally and calmly like adults but... come on, this is Aria he's talking about. She's a little spitfire, like a bright little flame that refused to be put out and she has a personality to match. Finally, Aria opened the door and came out, wearing her festival clothes. She had a frown set on her face and placed her hands on her hips like what her mothers does when she's upset with Kyle.

Aaron just rolled his eyes and went in the bathroom while muttering, "... too early for this kind of drama..." and closed the door with a click. Kyle shifted his weight and tried to look intimidating like what Douglas used to do when he was courting Mana, how he wished he can also make earthquakes, they can be handy at times like this one. Which reminds him, Gordon invited him to go drink with them in the clinic, which angered Mana greatly, saying that he's turning into a miniature version of her father where in return irked him since he'd vowed to not be like Douglas at all.

Aria shook her head, her feet planted on the floor firmly as she stood her ground, "Dad, I... appreciate on what you're trying to do but _please_, I really really like Orland and there's nothing you can do to stop it! We're going on the festival together and by 'we', it means me and Orland, not including you!" she huffed as her face began to turn red in annoyance. Kyle said nothing and slunk downstairs like a ghost, leaving Aria feeling guilty from what she was behaving, "Some daughter I am..." she sighed as she tucked a strand of stray lock behind her ear.

"Well, you don't want him to be your bodyguard in your date right?" Aaron said, with his head poking out of the door with a toothbrush inside his mouth. Aria threw him a dirty look and threw a crumpled paper ball at him, "Just get back there and mind your own business!"

"Hey, you're not the boss of me!"

"I am since I'm older than you"

"Hey, it's just three minutes"

"And still, it's the three minutes of me breathing in air before you!" she replied rather smugly as Aaron grumbled back and closed the door. She heard a rapt on the door and almost ran to answer it, only to find her father and Orland staring at each other on full force like there was electricity between them. She sighed loudly and Orland broke their eye contact and blushed as he shoved the bouquet to her direction, "Here' these are for you..."

She nearly squealed if she had no dignity left and instead opted to smile gratefully at him and smelled the flowers fondly and went into the kitchen to get a cup of water and placed them there. Orland just stayed outside since Kyle made no move to invite him in the house and Kyle had half a mind to chase the teen off of his land with his sickle. Aria skipped happily to Orland's side with a folded beach towel tucked under her arm and grabbed his hand, making Orland look at her incredulously and Kyle made a face at their joined hands, and said, "We're going to the festival now dad! Don't wait up~"

She didn't give him a chance to speak as she yanked Orland far from her father as possible. Aaron went down to see Kyle looking out with a blank stare on his face. "So..." Aaron started, "I'm gonna meet up with Leann in front of the Academy. See you in a bit dad!" and with that, left but not before a comforting pat on his father's shoulder. He passed by his mother and told her that he thinks Kyle is in comatose with his eyes opened.

Mana shooed a chuckling Aaron and ran towards the unresponsive Kyle and pinched his cheek painfully, that got a reaction out of him.

"OUCH! Mana, what was that for?"

"Oh you're such a drama queen. Just face the facts that Aria is growing up!"

Kyle breathed deeply before exhaling through his nose like a Buffamoo. He leaned on Mana's shoulder and twiddled his fingers, "Mana... did Aria mentioned where she and Orland were going?"

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Aria was walking beside Orland, humming good-naturally as the cherry blossom petals seemed to dance all around them. They past by Cammy and Roy who were busy talking about who can climb the fastest on a cherry tree, they past by Leonel who was talking to Sera while Serena was looking for something. Some of the adults were on the square including Ceci, Alicia, Yue and Herman. Max and Julia were by the docks and Tanya was heading towards the smithy.

Aria kept stealing glances at Orland who was trying to ignore it as they arrived on a secluded spot under a cherry tree at the far side of the academy. Aria spread out the towel and sat down, patting a spot next to her, "I'm not gonna bite you!" she smirked as Orland glared at her as he sat a bit farther from where she patted. Aria stuck her tongue put at him childishly and he chucked a leaf at her face, making it stick on her tongue. She stood up quickly and spat out the leaf while Orland's cheeks puffed out from the laughter that threatened to spill out as Aria proceeded to clean her tongue with a handkerchief.

He can't help but laugh at her and Aria immediately stopped what she was doing and looked at Orland with wide eyes and her mouth opened. He suddenly stopped laughing like there was an off switch, "What?" he asked in an irritated tone.

"What was that?"

"I believe it's called laughter."

"Can you do that again?"

"Are you an idiot?"

"Come on even just a chuckle! Pleeeease?" She continued to bug him until he just pulled the corners his mouth a bit upwards. Aria didn't seem satisfied and began to tickle him to make him laugh. She continued to tickle him on his ribs while he was fighting the urge to laugh. He lightly pulled on her hair in an attempt to cease her tickling but instead, she tickled him harder, making him laugh loudly against his will.

After a few more minutes, Aria grew bored and let Orland compose himself as she stared at the falling blossoms, "Orland, aren't the flowers beautiful?"

Orland snorted as he dusted the dirt off of his shirt, "What's so special about those flowers anyway?"

She frowned at his and closed her eyes as she breathe in deeply, relishing the fragrance the flowers emitted. She opened her eyes when she felt something brush her cheeks and blushed when she saw Orland's face very very close to hers. He was holding on a pink petal and he blushed when she blinked at him, "There was a petal that fell on your cheek," he muttered quietly.

Without even knowing what happened, his lips are automatically on hers, sharing an innocent kiss, no tongue whatsoever. They parted for a few seconds before he leaned in for another, this time; licking her lips to coax her to open her mouth which she granted permission. They made out for a few minutes before getting rudely interrupted by Aaron.

"Aria! Dad is- Aw, YUCK!"

They immediately separated when they saw Aaron faking an upchuck in front of them and Aria scowled at him while Orland glared at him with full force he inherited from Jake. "What do you want? Can't you see we were busy?"

"Yeah, I can _see_ that. And heaven hope I'll never see it again but you guys better hide, dad's looking for Aria!"

Aria stood up and folded the towel immediately as Orland also stood up and took the towel and yanked her towards the Academy, which was unlocked for some reason. They got in there just in time to see Kyle running around and spotted Aaron, "Hold it mister! Where is Aria?"

Aaron gulped softly and made the best innocent look he can muster, "Aria? I think I saw her and Orland making their way to Blessia Island. Maybe they were planning a picnic?"

Kyle looked at Aaron suspiciously and asked, "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be with Leann?"

Aaron looked confused for a while before shouting, "Oh God! I forgot about Leann!" He sprinted as fast as he could towards the mansion like a Pomme-Pomme who had lost its head. Kyle 'hnnn'-ed and looked around the spot as if looking for some sort of clue that Aria and Orland have been there in case Aaron warned them. Luckily, he didn't find anything so he left with an annoyed huff.

Orland and Aria watched the scene while they were hiding in the library. Aria let out a loud sigh and Orland clutched his chest to feel his fast beating heart return to its normal beat. They looked at each other and blushed like hell, Aria decided to break the tension and coughed, "So... what now?"

"What do you mean? We should go back anyway."

Aria looked a bit taken back but she clings on his sleeve and dared to ask, "Why... did you kiss me? Was it a spur of a moment or you... like me? As in_ like_ me more than a friend should?"

Orland looked at her for a moment and suddenly wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear softly, "Will you go steady with me?" He didn't need a reply when she tiptoed to his face and pressed her lips on his to confirm her answer and pulled back for a moment with a longing smile on her face. He returned it with a rare smile of his own as she leaned her head on his chest while he rested his cheek on top of her head. For now, nothing can ruin this moment.

* * *

Meanwhile in Blessia Island...

Kyle was running like a maniac with a couple of Goblin Gangsters hot on his heels, "When I get home, that girl is in soooo much trouble! And that included Aaron!" He turned around and slashed the chasing monsters and they disappeared to the Forest of Beginnings.

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A/N:

Don't you love those Boyfriend vs Overprotective Father scenes? But dammit! That was a sorry excuse for romance I've written. Sorry since its already 2 in the morning here and I'm gonna go to Canada tomorrow to visit some relatives. But don't worry~ I'll upload the next chapter next week. Anyways, R and R people, suggestions and comments are welcomed as always and God Bless!

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	4. Parental Supervision Yeah Right

**~~Daddy's Little Girl~~**

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A/N: So sorry I've not been updating lately but I had exams and Chemistry can be such a biatch~

**Disclaimer: Rune Factory 2 isn't mine**

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**Parental Supervision… yeah right**

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Aria was walking in air as twilight approached quickly in Alvarna. She felt as if nothing can put her mood down, she didn't even notice people looking at her quizzically as she began to skip around with delirious giggles pouring out of her mouth and suddenly hum into a tune that she had no idea she knew. At eight, it was adorable, but at sixteen, they will make you go to the Clinic and get checked in just in case of a head injury. She and Orland parted ways as soon as they got out of the Academy and bid each other a goodbye but not without a peck on the lips. Predictably, he asked her to keep their relationship a secret to her father, which she agreed to wholeheartedly; even if it irks her to keep a secret from her father. Aaron already knew this of course, but it will take a hell of a bribe to keep him from teasing her in front of everyone else.

Speaking of Aaron, she hadn't seen him since he ran towards Leann's mansion, knowing how strict her friend is with punctuality; no doubt she's giving Aaron the third degree. A smile played on her face as she mentally picture the ever quiet and gentle Leann lecturing and pulling Aaron by the ear, like how her mother would do to her dad when he gets in trouble. She would gladly give her savings and all of her allowance if she could at least see it happening before her very eyes right now.

She passed by the General store to wave at her grandfather while he gave her a gruff greeting and waved back, and nearly knocked over Alicia, who was gazing at her crystal ball, if it's authentic or not, Aria wasn't sure. The so called fortune-teller made a face as Aria straightened up to compose herself, "Well good evening Aria."

"Good evening Alicia~!"

Alicia studied her for a moment, making the teenager nervous as Alicia's eyes seemed to absorb _everything_ in front of her. The look Alicia wore as she studied her oddly reminded her of how Orland looks when he was reading a tome in the library; the same serious and calculating face that doesn't suit Alicia at the slightest. The fortune-teller suddenly cracked a smile and beckoned her near the lamp post since they were standing in the middle of the road.

"Would you like to know your fortune Aria?"

Aria looked perplexed, "I'm sorry but I haven't got a single gold with me", she patted her pockets for good measure. Alicia waved her hand like there was an irksome fly and laughed heartily, "Nah, I'll tell your fortune for free, just this once." She gestured Aria to come closer and made her look at the glistening silver ball. Alicia muttered a few words before looking at the crystal ball. Clearly Alicia sees something Aria can't because Alicia started giggling like a school girl as she looked into the ball whereas Aria can only see the reflection of their faces.

"Um, excuse me but... why are you giggling?"

The older woman cleared her throat and said, "It seems you just entered into a serious relationship and your father doesn't know!"

Aria couldn't help but gaze in awe at the ball, "You mean... you saw that within a ball? That's amazing!" Alicia nodded quite smugly and pointed at the side of her neck, "Yes, that, and you have a nice big love bite right under your left ear hun!" Aria clamped blindly around her entire neck with her face burning with embarrassment, and here she thought Alicia is a really accurate fortune-teller like Kyle always said. She thought that Orland did something weird on her neck which felt like he was sucking on her skin while they were making out in the Academy but waved it off as nothing.

Alicia smiled fondly at the sputtering teenager and hooked her arm with hers, "Come come now, let's go to my house and cover that up with oil-based concealer~!" Aria had no idea what that is but if it has the word "conceal" in it, she might survive a day scott-free from her dad, her mother would throw a party if she suddenly caught on what happened. Mana had been dropping hints at Aria's blooming love with the half-elf ever since she did that mock wedding with him. Mana started talking about weddings and dates and what would her grandchildren would look like; it gave Kyle a heart attack when she told him that she wanted to have another baby in her arms, and while Kyle thought it would be another offspring of his, she clarified that it will be coming from one of their children.

It didn't really help them that the twins were only thirteen at that time.

Alicia just blabbered away as Aria kept a hand cupped on the side of her neck, making it look like something bit her. She blushed at the words that formed in her mind and her face burned harder when they passed by Jake who was looking at Aria oddly, she can't even look at his face without feeling embarrassed. Jake is Orland's dad after all, and no doubt Jake would tell this encounter to Orland. They arrived at the clinic, bidding Ray and Dr Natalie a good evening, Rosalie was at the mansion visiting her father while the twins (Sera and Serena) were upstairs. They entered her room that was a clash of a magic shop and a cosmetics booth.

Alicia made her sit in one of the fluffy sofas while she excused herself to slip on something more comfortable. "No worries, take your time!" Aria called out as her eyes explored the room. She had never been to Alicia's room before, now that she's thought about it. There was a single bed with purple blankets on top of it, a huge circular mirror on top of a wooden dresser

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Aaron can feel it... the impending doom that Leann warned him about after he told her why he was late. It was a valid reason and believable enough for her not to scold him for being extremely tardy. Fifteen minutes is understandable, an hour is late enough but three and a half hours of waiting for a guy in front of your house is simply a crime!

He made it up with her as he led her to a nice shaded spot under a canopy of cherry blossom trees; their falling petals made it look like an elegant cascade of floral waterfall around them. He took her hand and surprised her with a blanket spread out and a heavy laden basket with a bottle of sparkling grape juice accompanied with two wine glasses. Her jade eyes glimmered with surprise and happiness as he bowed with a smile on his cherubic face, "Please enjoy, madam"

Leann blushed as he took out a wax paper package and opened to find a still piping-hot pizza in it, she hugged Aaron tightly and took a slice while Aaron fancied himself with the juice. She hummed in contentment as they watched the petals around them, "Where is Aria?" she asked, making a quizical look when he suddenly chuckled.

He grinned like an idiot while relishing that memory; forgetting the problem at hand; he told his dad that Aria and Orland was in Blessia Island alone and Kyle believed him. He is in deep trouble right about...

"AARON!"

... now

"Get down here at once young man; you've got some explaining to do!"

His mind echoed his mental plead for all the mercy of deities to spare him from the wrath of his father. He saw Kyle mad before, like the time when he planted the Emery flower seeds improperly that only three lived while the other seeds were blown away, and the time Aria planted one too many pink melons and forgot to water them, wasting thousands of gold. But he hadn't seen his father at his worst; Mana told him once and said it would be best if he never got to see it at all. He supposed it is right when people say that the kindest person will turn into the worst enemy when threatened or messed with.

When he reached the foot of the stairs, he released a breath he was holding when he saw his mother pulling on Kyle's ear while he was whining about how it hurts. Mana turned to Aaron and released Kyle's ear as she straightened her apron and cleared her throat, "Aaron dear, would you mind telling us where Aria is? It's getting awfully late and you have school tomorrow." Aaron shuffled his feet and looked at the clock which reads 10:39; Aria would have came back ages ago unless...

"Aha! She's with that Orland fellow isn't she!" Kyle bellowed when he saw the panic on Aaron's face, "I have half the mind to got to that Inn and-"

"Kyle, stop it right now! You are being overprotective, you may not know Orland that well but I've known him for years and he is a very polite, serious and responsible young man. I doubt they would even get anywhere beyond a kiss!"

"K-kiss? Aria's too young to even think of that!"

"Kyle, one more word out of you and you will be sleeping in the barn! Understand?"

"Ye-yes, ma'am"

Mana kept her eyes on Kyle as she asked Aaron about the whereabouts of his twin, "Aaron, we won't get mad. It's just that it's very unusual for Aria to be out and alone-"

Before she could finish her sentence, a knock came from the front door. Aaron raced to open in while praying that it's Aria who is at the opposite side of it. But sadly, he had no such luck,

"Sorry for the intrusion but Aria forgot this..."

Orland is standing on the doorway with Aria's beach towel on his arms. He looked positively alarmed at Aaron's expression, as though he might cry at any second. Mana looked curious while Kyle... the term murderous would be an understatement of the millennium. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other as he tried his best not to glare back at Kyle. Aaron laughed in a fake laugh and pulled him in, "Ahaha, excuse us for a minute!" Before Mana and Kyle can even utter a word, Aaron closed the door behind them. He looked at Orland with panic present in his eyes,

"Orland, where in the world is my _other half_?"

"I think she's in the mansion with her parents-"

"Not Leann you moron! I meant Aria, where is she? My dad's this close to choking me and mom is interrogating me with guilt!"

"... And I should care... why?"

Aaron could only gape at him like a fish with disbelief, "What are you- grrr, you ungrateful jerk! I almost risked my life so that you two would hook up and this is how you repay me?"

Orland just rolled his eyes in the umpteenth time for that day as he pushed the beach towel to Aaron's chest, "I was just joking, I really don't know where Aria is. She left as soon as the sun comes down. I thought she would be home by now, obviously" he said, with a tired tone like he ran a marathon. Aaron puffed out an irritated sigh as he scratched the back of his head while thinking of the possibilities of what happened to his troublesome twin.

"Do you think... something happened to her?" he asked his silent companion with panic lacing his words.

Orland's eyes grew wide as soon as Aaron's words left his mouth. He thought for a moment... no doubt it would be possible. His now-girlfriend has a penchant for getting herself into sticky situations. But he can't just jump into conclusions. Maybe she just stopped by at Douglas'? Or maybe visited Leann?

Aaron was about to voice out another possibility when Aria suddenly popped out of nowhere with Alicia who looked bored. "Orland? What are you doing here?"

"You forgot your towel and your family was about to form a search party to find you."

Aria blushed in embarrassment as Aaron noogied her, hissing, "Where were you? Dad's looking for you and I'm the one receiving the end of that anger!"

Aria pinched her brother on his side, letting her go, "I was about to go home when I saw Alicia and we... chatted"

"How long does it take for you women to talk? And- would you stop staring at me?" Orland snapped at Alicia who is looking at him with wonder. She ignored Orland's outburst and said to Aria, "It was Ceci's brat? Oh you have strange taste Aria, I thought you were with Leonel. He is such a sweet kid rather than... him." she said with a clear distaste. Orland felt his ears getting hot, Leonel, huh?

Alicia just sighed and pushed Aria towards the door, "Now now, Auntie Alicia is here to help your dilemmas! It won't be free of course but Kyle is a rational man..." she babbled. Aria waved a goodbye at Orland while Alicia looked back at him and said, "Don't worry~! I'll make sure I'll put in a good word for you; lover boy! Taaa~!"

"Don't fret kids. I'll be your 'parental supervision'!"

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A/N: I'm so sorry it's so... short but I promise within this week, it'll get better. **R&R** people! Hits are great but reviews makes my world go round! Comment and suggestions are ever welcome I love u guys!


	5. Exams

**~~Daddy's Little girl~~**

****A/N: Sorry for the long wait. This fanfic will be up again and will be updated weekly along with my other fics. Thanks for those who're still reading this story despite the long wait. I'm really really sorry for the long delay.**  
****Disclaimer: Rune Factory 2 isn't mine**

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**Exams**

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Alicia looked at her red polish coated nails as Aria and Aaron just stood next her quietly while Kyle paced to and fro; animatedly waving his hands in the air as he let out his anger. On Aria for breaking the curfew hours (they are allowed to stay out only until 9 during school nights) and spent all day with a boy without any adult supervision. And on Aaron for lying to him to cover for his sister.

"Do you have any idea what kind of thoughts went in my mind? I almost went out of that door and go to the dungeons to find you!"

Mana let Kyle blow his anger out; it was rare next to nonexistent when her husband lose his temper. She studied her children's faces and softened as their expressions were clearly written with sincere apology and guilt. With her maternal instincts that invaded her, she placed a hand on Kyle's shoulder that made him stop talking and looked at her. Mana stepped forward and looked at them with a serious look on her face, almost similar to her husband's; "I am very disappointed at both of you. Aaron, you should know better than to lie to us especially if it's for the safety of anyone in this family. Aria, it may be a festival but you can't abuse your independence. What do you have to say for yourselves?"

Aria looked up and started to explain, "Orland and I were together at school grounds. Aaron went there to tell us that dad was on his way to guard me and I- I... panicked!"

Kyle raised a suspicious brow and crossed his arms, "And why would you panic? Aha! There's something going on between you two isn't there? I knew it!"

Aria thought that the jig was up when Aaron suddenly answered, "Dad, Aria just ran away from you because you're going to ruin her date! It's not like they're making out or something- Oof!"

Aria elbowed him hard on the ribs while Alicia tried to hide her smirk and stepped in, "Now now, I'll tell you what happened why Aria here was a wee bit late~"

The two parents looked at her and then at each other as if having a mental conversation about whether to believe Alicia or not. Alicia gave an affronted look and held out a hand, "I promise, I will say the truth!"

Mana just shook her head slightly at her friend and just let her start. "Aria was already on her way home when the sun was only starting to set. I just happen to be on the same path and we started to talk-"

"And you just started to chat about things randomly?" Kyle asked

"And we didn't realize how long we've been talking," Alicia continued as if she didn't hear anything, "When we got here, Aaron and Ceci's brat are fighting about something and here we are~" she sang quite offhandedly despite the tension in the room. Mana groaned and rubbed her temple while Kyle made a 'tsk'-ing sound with his hands fisted on his sides; "Alicia, I know you're really not that responsible," the fortune-teller scowled at this, "But I have two teenagers to raise and I don't need a 'supposed' adult to give them a bad influence!" The strawberry blond woman huffed and puffed out her chest, "May I remind you Kyle that your kids have been later than this when they were as young as eight! And might I also remind you why they're like that?" He turned red and opened his mouth to rebuke when Mana interrupted the incoming quarrel,

"Alicia, we're thankful that you've walked Aria home but if you're going to do something like that, at least keep in mind that as parents, Kyle and I will always worry about their safety despite their age." Alicia saw and felt the seriousness and sincerity in Mana's voice that she nodded slowly and placed her hands on her hips, "Well, I am sorry for keeping Aria this late also. It won't happen again, promise!"

Kyle narrowed his eyes and turned to the two teens; "We will talk about this tomorrow. Right now, go to sleep, you have school tomorrow."

Aria and Aaron nodded and bid a quiet goodnight to Alicia and to their parents before climbing the stairs and into their respective rooms. Kyle then looked at Alicia and softened his gaze, "Sorry for talking like that. It's just that-"

"I know, I know" she interrupted, "If I were also a parent I would react that way too. It's just that they're already growing up Kyle; you have to let them leave the nest sooner or later y'know?" Mana smile slightly and nodded towards Kyle who sighed deeply. He didn't expect to get a parental advice from Alicia.

Alicia also gave her farewell and walked home, leaving the couple to stand in front of the fireplace to talk.

* * *

Aria groaned as she felt the sunlight hit her squarely on the face. She turned around and pulled on her covers to get more sleep when there was a knock on her door;

"Aria, it's already eight. Get up or you'll be late!" Kyle said at the opposite side of the door.

Aria inhaled deeply before she forced to lift herself and stand on her floorboards with her mind still in a half-asleep state. She placed a shirt with a sleeveless cardigan Julia and Max gave her a year ago and her beige shorts before she clambered out of her room. Mana heard irregular footfalls on the stairs and hid a smile behind her hand, "Aria you should fix your hair sweetie, it looks like a bird's nest." Aria didn't seem to hear Mana's advice and just walked mindlessly out of the house and made her way towards the school.

Aaron exited the barn and yawned while he stretched his arms out. He then saw his sister walking pass him with a vacant look on her face. He shook his head and jogged next to her, "Rough night?" he asked. "Mnh-brgm-uh" she mumbled incoherently while Aaron nodded as if to understand what she just said, "Yeah, I didn't get much sleep either. And- oh no!" He suddenly stopped and remained rooted on the spot which made Aria turn to his direction with a questioning expression.

"It's both mom and Barrett's final exams today! If we're gonna flunk, then it's..."

Aria's sleepy eyes suddenly widened and her sleep-induced brain snapped to its original state and yelled in a horrified tone, "Summer school!" Aaron winced at the thought of having to spend another extra month in the school while other kids will have their summer break. Since they're already nearing the end of the lessons their teachers have planned, they decided to cut the school days just two and a half seasons rather than four so the kids will have more time to discover new things on their own and so that they can still have new lessons once school starts again.

"What am I gonna do? I didn't even memorize half of the recipes mom taught us and I can't even make a decent pudding!" Aria wailed, her hands flew to her already dishelved hair, making it even more messy. Aaron sweat dropped as he watched his sister ran back and forth while waving her arms, "No no no no! This is it, I'm gonna flunk, I just know it! Oh man, what are they gonna think? Dad made the school while mom is a teacher and me? I'm the girl who flunked and will be the one wearing the dunce cap in summer school! I might have to move and change my name and look-"

"Aria"

"-even my face! And Orland- Oh my gosh, _Orland_!"

"Aria!"

"Orland's the smartest kid in class! He'll be ashamed to call me his girlfriend and dump me right then and there! He might-"

"For the love of Fiersome, Aria!" Aaron yelled as he gripped both sides of Aria and shook her to get he attention, "Listen to me, you will not flunk okay? You may not have the best grades especially at cooking-"

"Hey!"

"But I'm sure you won't fail as badly as Roy. Believe me when I say that you are the luckiest person in the whole world!" Aria's eyes lightened and calmed down from her hysterics, "Really?" she asked. Her twin nodded again and loosened his grip, "When we fought Fiersome, you only got a single scar while I got burns, bruises AND scars! And the other time when we're fighting at the dojo? We were outnumbered two to seven and I was already down to my last recovery potion but you still keep going at those Necros even if they're teleporting like crazy. And remember what happened after then?"

Aria grinned and sighed, "I kept swinging my Soul Eater at thin air and didn't realize I was actually hitting them dead on and when Barret came back, we already won." Aaron grinned widely back and placed his hands on his hips, "Yup! You may not know it but you sure are the lucky one between the two of us." She giggled and rubbed the back of her neck earnestly, "I guess I have inherited dad's luck"

They've arrived at the school a few more seconds before the test started. Mana sighed with relief as she waited on her twins to find their seats. Orland spared a glance at Aria with a corner of his eye and she returned it with a sunny smile a small wave which made him blush lightly and quickly fixated his gaze to the board in front of him.

"Alright class. I will call you in twos. Those two will cook different dishes that I will instruct them to make while the other three will stay here but no reviewing of notes!" she warned, "I were to catch anyone cheating, I will have a chat with your parents," she let her gaze linger longer to Aria and Aaron simultaneously before smiling again and reached for her notebook, "The first two I will call is..."

Almost everyone didn't breathe in anticipation, Orland looked merely bored while Leonel was excited, before she looked up and announced,

"Roy and Aria!"

Aria and Roy mirrored the look of surprise and slight terror. Slowly, Aria stood up from her chair with shaky legs and looked towards the half-elf who in turn gave her a look of encouragement for which she was grateful. She and Roy walked towards the workshop silently, a change for both of them since they're always talking. Roy suddenly gave out a nervous laugh for no reason, making her even more nervous herself.

Mana felt the scared aura her students gave off and turned to them, "Now don't act as if you're going to be executed. This is just an exam to see if you have been studying these past weeks. If you didn't pass the exam, there are always remedial classes but please, do pass them in your first try!" The two gulped and went to their work stations and Mana took out a small pot filled with small folded papers with the names of dishes written on them.

An hour had passed and so far, Aaron didn't hear any explosions or see a thick black smoke coming from the workshop. It was a good sign. He looked at Leann who was busy memorizing dozens of recipes in her mind. He chose not to distract her and walked between Leonel and Orland, "So, how was yesterday?" he asked them in a nonchalant tone. Orland ignored him while Leonel smiled, "The cherry blossoms were so pretty yesterday. Sera and Serena asked if we could play hide and seek but at the end of the day, I couldn't find them so I had to watch it all by myself" he ended with a disappointed sigh. Aaron watched his friend pitifully before a smirk formed on his lips, "Aaaaand? What about you? How did the date that I saved turn out?"

Leonel looked questioningly from Aaron to and irritated Orland, "Saved? You should say interrupted" he answered scathingly. Aaron scowled and crossed his arms, "If it weren't for me, dad might've already had your head mounted by the fireplace and Aria would've been forced to enter a convent!"

Orland rolled his eyes and continued to stare at nothing with his cold tone, "You're overreacting as always. I doubt Aria would just sit put inside a church bench for more than three minutes." Leonel looked confused, "Wait, what are we talking about?"

"I saw him and my sister making out yesterday and told them to hide since my dad was looking for her." Aaron said in a matter-of-fact tone. Leonel stared wide-eyed at the silent half-elf teen while Orland glared at the cinnamon-haired Earthmate; "That was suppose to be a secret!"

"Well then 'Oops!' Sorry, slip of the tongue!" he quipped sarcastically and walked away to talk to his girlfriend. Leonel continued to stare at Orland before he dropped his gaze to the floor, "So... you and Aria...?"

"Can we please just stop talking about it?" he replied rather viciously but pink tinted his pale cheeks and his elfin ears were also reddening. Leonel shifted uneasily with an unreadable look on his face that Orland wished he didn't saw. His blue eyes reflected the look of hurt and he kicked the ground rather harshly, something Leonel wouldn't do on a daily basis.

"You like her... don't you?" he said it more like an observation rather than a question. Now it was Leonel's turn to blush but brighter and more obvious than the former. He can't meet with Orland's eyes and glued his to the floor.

"Hmph"

The feminine-looking teen looked at Orland worriedly as he huffed and crossed his arms and stood in front of him with a strange glint in his eyes, "Let me make this clear; we might be in good terms Leonel, but I won't let Aria go even if she doesn't want me anymore. Elves are more persistent than you mere humans; we always get what we want." With that, he sharply turned around with his cape almost whipping his face by mere inches. Leonel sadly placed a hand in his left pocket and felt the cool metal of the heart pendant he wanted to give to Aria.

He knew Orland is serious with Aria, he too harbored a romantic sentiment for the Earthmate girl, if not, even longer than the elf teen. Orland developed a liking to her by the time he asked her to help get him an insect jaw which he was trying to keep a secret which failed when Roy saw Aria handing it to him in the Square.

He, instead fell head over heels for her ever since he first time he laid eyes on her. It troubled him at first when she thought he was a girl but she kept telling him that she liked his normal girly face than a cross looking person's (like Orland). When he proposed to Aria for a mock wedding, her smile dropped and told him in an unusual quiet voice that she just like him as a friend. He experienced his first rejection, first heartbreak that when she left he ran out of the house, almost knocking a surprised Barrett out of the door before heading towards the port and silently let his tears fall to the ocean.

Truthfully, he didn't even know how to react when Aria and Orland went through with their mock wedding a few days after his proposal. And upon realizing that they are now officially dating, he didn't even want to know what happened yesterday by the way Aaron teased Orland and his violent reaction. And right now; he just want to have as much distance between them as possible.

"Yes!"

A yell was heard across the whole school and the classroom doors slammed open with Aria whose smile threatened to split her face into two with Roy behind her with his hands on the air and shouting happily. Aria ran towards Orland with arms wide open and tackled him with all her might. Orland steadied himself before they can fall to the hard floor with his squealing 'secret' girlfriend in his arms. "Orland I passed! Can you believe it? I got full marks with the dish I made!" she cried while her arms wrapped around his neck so tightly that it threatened to choke him. He cleared his throat and awkwardly gave her a small hug before he planted her feet on the ground, "Good for you. What did she assign you with? Ultimate Curry?"

"Hehehe, now you're just teasing me!"

Leann smiled for her friend and congratulated her along with Roy who was running around saying that he doesn't have to go to summer school. Aaron grinned widely and mouthed the words "I told you!"

She shook her head and clapped her hands, "Mom made us pick on random folded papers and I then got..."

They waited for her to say it before she finally yelled, "I got taimen sashimi! Isn't that a weird coincidence?" Everyone was silent, so unnatural that a cricket chirped at broad daylight. Orland cleared his throat loudly, "That is such a coincidence indeed." She giggled while Aaron talked with how Roy did;

"What was yours?"

"Hot milk, can you believe it?"

"Yeah, I can..."

Within a couple of hours, everyone had passed the exam with Leonel and Orland being the highest with Orland's Ultimate Curry and Leonel's relax tea leaves. Aria noticed for some reason that Orland is more competitive than usual. Though Orland has always maintained the highest grades in class, he never had interest in cooking; it was more of Leonel's turf.

Leonel.

She never really talked heart-to-heart with him again ever since the proposal thing. Whenever they would try to talk to each other like before, there was always something that made everything so complicated. The boy in question smiled shyly as Mana praised his work, "It has a very good quality as high as Orland's! I'm so glad that everyone passed the exam with flying colors. Everyone can take an early lunch and prepare for Barrett's exams. Good luck and again, congratulations!" She beamed as the students lined out with their lunches on hand and began to take their cooked dishes to share with everyone.

The sun was glaring down and gave an unnatural heat wave and Aria almost swore she saw the birds melting on the branches. She and Leann sat on their regular spot under the cherry blossom tree, next to where she and Orland sat the day before. She unconsciously sent a smile to the particular tree which Leann concluded that yesterday ended in a good note. And by the way her best friend was acting; it was more than just good.

Orland sat on the bench near the dojo with the bowl of ultimate curry on his lap. He never had a taste for savory foods and just stood up and walked up to Aaron and Roy who was pigging out on Aaron's seafood doria. The two were chatting animatedly and failed to notice that they had company. Orland stood in front of them for a good three minutes before placing the bowl next to the spot Aaron was sitting before walking back into the classroom and review his notes.

He reached under his desk and retrieved the notebook filled with formulas and materials needed for various tools and weaponry. The leaves of the notebook yellowed slightly with age as he used the very same notes seven years ago. "Broadsword, poison powder, iron, scorpion tail and spore..."

"Are the materials you need to make a Sakura sword," a voice said behind him. His vision was cut as a pair of small yet calloused hands covered his eyes and a soft body pressed on his back that heated his whole face.

"Aria, I'm trying to study" he flatly stated. The girl giggled and removed her hands before she sat on the chair next to his. "I don't know why you even bother to study Orland," she began, "You already know it by heart but you still bury your head in those books." Orland said nothing and continued to read his notes as Aria watched him with keen interest. Sure she had seen him study before; one of the things on why she fell for him despite his former distaste for humans. He felt her eyes on him and made him uneasy; she was staring at him as if it was the most fascinating thing in the whole universe and was about to ask her to stop staring only to see her looking at him with a blush on her face and her expression was like a very love struck teen.

She snapped from her state and twiddled her thumbs, "Err, sorry 'bout that" He tilted his head slightly and gave her a confused look before he just said "Well, just be quiet so I can concentrate."

"M'kay"

She then returned her gaze at him and felt her cheeks grow even hotter. The way his platinum blond hair fell just above his shoulder, his sharp light blue eyes scanning his notes with all the focus he needed. His shoulders squared stiffly with pure seriousness but at the same time it was like he was at ease, the way he brushed his stray bangs from the side of his aristocratic nose with long slender fingers.

Aria would have thought the gods had sent an ethereal being if she didn't know he was Jake and Cecilia's son.

Not just with the way he looks but also the way he holds himself; he was proud, a bit arrogant with an inherited superior-complex of elves from humans that she could never understand. He can be such a jerk and haughty... that's what made him 'Orland' and she accepted all of that.

She folded her arms on the desk and laid her head sideways and continued to watch him, contented to remain in that position; just Orland and her, together. Aria mentally slapped herself, 'Whoa, I better stop reading those novels Julia and Yue lent me' she thought. It wasn't as old as once upon a time where she was more interested about making swords than picking out a flattering outfit. Or that her best friends were actually the monsters in their barn and Barrett was the person she looked up to during the presence of Kyle which stretched to two years that left the twins fatherless.

Her eyelids were heavy and she welcomed the darkness like an old friend and within a few seconds, all she could see were swirls of colors and flashes of events. IT might have been minutes or maybe an hour but felt like seconds when someone patted her shoulder and calling her name. She closed her eyes tighter before opening her eyes and looked up to see Barrett with a disapproving expression on his face. "If you can afford to sleep rather than study for the exam Aria, I think you will do the honors of making a Dragonslayer and a pair of knight boots."

She stood up with an outraged look, "What? But… But I-"

Barrett scowled at her and walked towards the workshop, with Aria's collar on his hand and the teenager mouthed the words "Help me" Aaron just waved at her pathetically while Leann and Leonel exchanged the look of worry mixed with pity. "Can't believe you can sleep in minutes before the exam, you're worst than Roy! Ugh, definitely like Kyle!" Barrett mumbled as he chucked coals into the forge and waited for Aria to gather the materials she needed. "Barrett why do you have to pick on me?" she pouted childishly, earning her a strict look from the mayor's son.

"You don't really think I'm going to fall for that put do you? You're not a kid anymore Aria."

"It always works with dad…" she mumbled

"Well your dad is a pushover when it comes to you" he answered, "Kyle can defeat monsters with just a flick of his wrist but just a bat of an eyelash from his kid, he's completely useless."

Aria snorted at the idea and began to place the blade to the hot coals, "If he can just stop babying me… *sigh*"

Barrett snapped out of his paternal mode and crossed his arms, "We're not here to talk about whether Kyle has daughter-issues or not. Make that sword and those boots or I'll see you in summer school. Got that?"

"Yes, sir…"

* * *

Preview:

"Now's the time to party!"

"Are you saying my son's not good enough for your daughter, human?"

"What is the legal drinking age again?"

"At least no one's dancing on top of the table- Aaron, get down from that table!"

**A/N: R and R please. Don't just hit that Alert or Favorite!**


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